Best City in Florida

[cthomer5000]

Anything in South Florida (plenty of drugs).

[Bubba Wheels]

Some friends moving down to Florida in the Tampa area soon. Would like to move down there myself. Which area is best? Orlando is nice but seems to touristy for real life. Jacksonville I hear good things about, crime in and around Tampa sounds not too good. Ft Myers and Naples seem to be the hot spots. South Florida is out of bounds, too much drugs (and crime.) Which area is best?

[Bubba Wheels]

Anything in South Florida (plenty of drugs).

Crockett and Tubbs still hanging out down there?

[sovereignstar]

Can't go wrong with Florida. Two professional football franchises.

And then there's the Dolphins too.

[HomerJSimpson]

Can't go wrong with Florida. Two professional football franchises.

And then there's the Dolphins too.


And Florida, Miami, FSU...:)

[Noop]

South Florida isn't that bad. Depends on where you stay and I am sure your not going to go live in the projects or the poor part. North Miami Beach, Miami Lakes, Boward County is nice and is nothing like Dade. And the drive to the stadium is like 15 mins or 5 if you use the turnpike.

[Joe]

have fun in the hurricanes.

[Ksyrup]

Ft. Myers/Naples. Definitely. I wouldn't touch the eastern section of south Florida with Noop's dick. Especially since Broward is adding gambling. Ugh. Yet another attraction for the wonderful people who live down there.

I enjoy Tallahassee, this is a great college and family-oriented town, and it's the capitol as well. But it's hell for single post-college 20-somethings and 30-somethings. And, we're not exactly close to anything remotely resembling a professional sports or music concert scene (which is about the only minus of living here, to be honest).

[JeffR]

Some friends moving down to Florida in the Tampa area soon. Would like to move down there myself. Which area is best? Orlando is nice but seems to touristy for real life.

It's only touristy if you hang around the tourist areas in the south/southwest part of town, and there's no real reason to do that unless you're working there. I spent three good years living in Orlando, and want to go back eventually. Plenty of nice neighborhoods, low cost of living, and (the good side of being a tourist town) entertainment and dining options that a city that size normally wouldn't have.

[dawgfan]

It's only touristy if you hang around the tourist areas in the south/southwest part of town, and there's no real reason to do that unless you're working there. I spent three good years living in Orlando, and want to go back eventually. Plenty of nice neighborhoods, low cost of living, and (the good side of being a tourist town) entertainment and dining options that a city that size normally wouldn't have.

That's encouraging - I'm considering a job possibility in Orlando.

[Ksyrup]

I have a good friend who lives in Winter Park, which is just northeast of Orlando. It's pretty nice, close to everything, but seems a bit old.

[dawgfan]

Just Winter Park, or the whole Orlando area?

[Solecismic]

Crime rate in Florida cities with more than 50,000 people (US average is 330.6). Not all cities report crime numbers:

Boca Raton 245.3, population 74,764
Boynton Beach 626.6, population 60,389
Cape Coral 270.8, population 102,286
Clearwater 493.9, population 108,787
Coral Springs 214.8, population 117,549
Davie 327.9, population 75,720
Daytona Beach 928.9, population 64,112
Deerfield Beach 238.8, population 64,583
Delray Beach 568.9, population 60,020
Fort Lauderdale 594.6, population 152,397
Gainesville 478.3, population 95,447
Hialeah 406.3, population 226,419
Hollywood 476.8, population 139,357
Jacksonville 542.2, population 735,617
Lakeland 511.6, population 78,452
Largo 288.5, population 69,371
Lauderhill 458.3, population 57,585
Margate 235.7, population 53,909
Melbourne 620.3, population 71,382
Miami 891.2, population 362,470
Miami Beach 849.2, population 87,933
Miramar 382.8, population 72,739
North Miami 786.9, population 59,880
Orlando 948.3, population 185,951
Palm Bay 420.6, population 79,413
Pembroke Pines 228.2, population 137,427
Pensacola 427.1, population 56,255
Plantation 328.4, population 82,934
Pompano Beach 469.9, population 78,191
Port St. Lucie 218.4, population 88,769
St. Petersburg 762.0, population 248,232
Sarasota 683.2, population 52,715
Sunrise 343.4, population 85,779
Tallahassee 604.2, population 150,624
Tamarac 160.2, population 55,588
Tampa 1048.8, population 303,447
West Palm Beach 949.1, population 82,103

Highest in country with +50,000 population:

St. Louis, MO, 1212.0, population 348,189
Atlanta, GA 1131.4, population 416,474
Tampa, FL
Irvington, NJ 1019.6, population 60,695
Detroit, MI 1003.9, population 951,270

In addition, Florida has three cities (Fort Myers 1007.9, Fort Pierce 1033.1, Homestead 1050.0) also above 1000 in crime rate, but slightly less than 50,000 people. The crime rate in Naples is 327.9. It's an extremely expensive area, though.

Overall, Florida ranks first among the 50 states for property crime (5351 incidents per 100,000 people per year) and for violent crime (854 incidents per 100,000 people per year). The average is around 3600 and 400.

If you want to avoid crime in Florida, be prepared to spend a lot of money - either on a gated community or a very ritzy area.

[Ksyrup]

Well, WP is the only residential area I've been around. The have a nice downtown, brick streets, etc., they do an art festival every year, that sort of thing.

[Noop]

Ft. Myers/Naples. Definitely. I wouldn't touch the eastern section of south Florida with Noop's dick. Especially since Broward is adding gambling. Ugh. Yet another attraction for the wonderful people who live down there.

I enjoy Tallahassee, this is a great college and family-oriented town, and it's the capitol as well. But it's hell for single post-college 20-somethings and 30-somethings. And, we're not exactly close to anything remotely resembling a professional sports or music concert scene (which is about the only minus of living here, to be honest).
Man alot of hate for South Florida. Now the part about my dick.... I am not sure what your trying to say.

[Ksyrup]

Noop, it's an old joke.

As far as crime rates, those composite figures are always misleading. For instance, in Tallahassee, there are areas around both schools (FSU and FAMU) and south of teh city generally, where you don't want to live. Where I live, in the NE, there's hardly any crime. I haven't seen or known anyone who has had a break-in, stolen car, or been involved with a violent crime up here. It's pretty well isolated to certain areas that you can stay away from.

But I suspect it's the same in most places, and you don't need to live behind a gate to feel safe.

[JeffR]

Well, WP is the only residential area I've been around. The have a nice downtown, brick streets, etc., they do an art festival every year, that sort of thing.

That's the Park Avenue area - I went to business school at Rollins College, which is at the southern edge of it. Very nice, very expensive. Most of WP is old-money older, as opposed to broken-down older, although it gets a little grungy towards I-4 (but then gets a little nicer again when you cross the highway and get into College Park on the other side.) Best illustration of Winter Park I can give is the little signs posted here and there that read "Welcome to Winter Park. Please drive with extraordinary care." Somebody defaced one near the college, erasing 'with' and the e in 'care'. It was that way the whole time I lived there - guess people figured it was pretty much true, so why fix it? ;)

Those are among the oldest parts of town, though. Most of Orlando's growth has been post-1970, after Disney opened, so the vast majority of the city is new construction. The east side of town is getting a bit crowded, and the traffic there has a nasty reputation, but the county has put a lot of money into beefing up the roads, etc., on the west side, where I lived, in anticipation of future growth. So the people living there right now get the benefit of relatively underused infrastructure.

[Balldog]

Stay away from Bradenton, that is all I know.

[Flasch186]

Jacksonville rocks. ITs on the cusp of being huge and the dollar value is great here. A new luxury mall just opened up so thats the newest thing. Crime is nominal, traffic is not like Tampa or Orlando bad (yet). I HIGHLY reccomend it.

[Flasch186]

Crime rate in Florida cities with more than 50,000 people (US average is 330.6). Not all cities report crime numbers:

Boca Raton 245.3, population 74,764
Boynton Beach 626.6, population 60,389
Cape Coral 270.8, population 102,286
Clearwater 493.9, population 108,787
Coral Springs 214.8, population 117,549
Davie 327.9, population 75,720
Daytona Beach 928.9, population 64,112
Deerfield Beach 238.8, population 64,583
Delray Beach 568.9, population 60,020
Fort Lauderdale 594.6, population 152,397
Gainesville 478.3, population 95,447
Hialeah 406.3, population 226,419
Hollywood 476.8, population 139,357
Jacksonville 542.2, population 735,617
Lakeland 511.6, population 78,452
Largo 288.5, population 69,371
Lauderhill 458.3, population 57,585
Margate 235.7, population 53,909
Melbourne 620.3, population 71,382
Miami 891.2, population 362,470
Miami Beach 849.2, population 87,933
Miramar 382.8, population 72,739
North Miami 786.9, population 59,880
Orlando 948.3, population 185,951
Palm Bay 420.6, population 79,413
Pembroke Pines 228.2, population 137,427
Pensacola 427.1, population 56,255
Plantation 328.4, population 82,934
Pompano Beach 469.9, population 78,191
Port St. Lucie 218.4, population 88,769
St. Petersburg 762.0, population 248,232
Sarasota 683.2, population 52,715
Sunrise 343.4, population 85,779
Tallahassee 604.2, population 150,624
Tamarac 160.2, population 55,588
Tampa 1048.8, population 303,447
West Palm Beach 949.1, population 82,103

Highest in country with +50,000 population:

St. Louis, MO, 1212.0, population 348,189
Atlanta, GA 1131.4, population 416,474
Tampa, FL
Irvington, NJ 1019.6, population 60,695
Detroit, MI 1003.9, population 951,270

In addition, Florida has three cities (Fort Myers 1007.9, Fort Pierce 1033.1, Homestead 1050.0) also above 1000 in crime rate, but slightly less than 50,000 people. The crime rate in Naples is 327.9. It's an extremely expensive area, though.

Overall, Florida ranks first among the 50 states for property crime (5351 incidents per 100,000 people per year) and for violent crime (854 incidents per 100,000 people per year). The average is around 3600 and 400.

If you want to avoid crime in Florida, be prepared to spend a lot of money - either on a gated community or a very ritzy area.



I live here and that last statment is simply not true....

[Ksyrup]

Agreed.

[Breeze]

Stay away from Bradenton, that is all I know.


why?

[Ksyrup]

I don't know, but if you don't like clowns and old people, stay away from Sarasota.

[Balldog]

why?

I have many relatives there, crime appears to be outrageous.

From personal experience:

A few years back I had a cousin murdered there.
Went to the mall and got robbed.
A drive-by shooting killed one of my cousin's kids at a birthday party for a 10-year old girl.


Granted these cousins down there have lived a rough life, when they come up to Ohio they love it. When they lived up here they were never involved in any kind of trouble.

Maybe I am wrong about the city of Bradenton but I would never live there.

[Breeze]

Wow things sure have changed. I lived in Bradenton for several years. I wouldn't exactly recommend it - it has some nice areas, but for the most part it's nondescript. I haven't heard anything about the explosion of violent crimes. When I was there (middle and High School) we didn't have that problem.

Ironically, Sarasota (which Ksyrup disparaged above) is actually quite nice. A much more upscale version of Bradenton (as I remember it - not more upscale in better criminals :D)

However, it probably is not an area I would recommend for someone who is single and young. Unless you've got bunches of money and can live close to St. Armans Circle.

Sorry to hear about your families losses Balldawg.

[Flasch186]

Wow things sure have changed. I lived in Bradenton for several years. I wouldn't exactly recommend it - it has some nice areas, but for the most part it's nondescript. I haven't heard anything about the explosion of violent crimes. When I was there (middle and High School) we didn't have that problem.

Ironically, Sarasota (which Ksyrup disparaged above) is actually quite nice. A much more upscale version of Bradenton (as I remember it - not more upscale in better criminals :D)

However, it probably is not an area I would recommend for someone who is single and young. Unless you've got bunches of money and can live close to St. Armans Circle.

Sorry to hear about your families losses Balldawg.


I have heard tough things about the tougher parts of Bradenton but thats like 4.5 hours away...shoot might as well be Cuba when youre that far away. (or Miami)

[gstelmack]

I grew up in Venice and went to school in Tampa. Left 9 years ago, and boy do I like North Carolina...

[Ksyrup]

Ironically, Sarasota (which Ksyrup disparaged above) is actually quite nice.
C'mon now, that was clearly a joke! Even if it is true that when Bo Jackson got his first hit in spring training with the White Sox after having his hips replaced, 90% of the crowd gave him a standing ovation because they knew what it was like to have hip replacement surgery. :)

[Breeze]

C'mon now, that was clearly a joke! Even if it is true that when Bo Jackson got his first hit in spring training with the White Sox after having his hips replaced, 90% of the crowd gave him a standing ovation because they knew what it was like to have hip replacement surgery. :)


So was mine. And nice one on the hip replacement bit. :D

[Lathum]

St. Augustine is nice. I did some work there a few years back. Close enough to Jacksonville but still with a "small town" feel.

[Flasch186]

St. Augustine is nice. I did some work there a few years back. Close enough to Jacksonville but still with a "small town" feel.

BOOMING!!!

[Lathum]

BOOMING!!!
huh?

[KWhit]

Boca Raton and Delray Beach would get my vote if I had the cash.

The cost of living is pretty high in those areas though.

[Flasch186]

huh?

NE Florida is booming, real estat prices are skyrocketing and the areas surrounding Jville are, well, booming....If you have any discretionary income I say buy an investment propertty down here. You wont regret it.

[wahoomac]

That's the Park Avenue area - I went to business school at Rollins College, which is at the southern edge of it. Very nice, very expensive. Most of WP is old-money older, as opposed to broken-down older, although it gets a little grungy towards I-4 (but then gets a little nicer again when you cross the highway and get into College Park on the other side.) Best illustration of Winter Park I can give is the little signs posted here and there that read "Welcome to Winter Park. Please drive with extraordinary care." Somebody defaced one near the college, erasing 'with' and the e in 'care'. It was that way the whole time I lived there - guess people figured it was pretty much true, so why fix it? ;)

Those are among the oldest parts of town, though. Most of Orlando's growth has been post-1970, after Disney opened, so the vast majority of the city is new construction. The east side of town is getting a bit crowded, and the traffic there has a nasty reputation, but the county has put a lot of money into beefing up the roads, etc., on the west side, where I lived, in anticipation of future growth. So the people living there right now get the benefit of relatively underused infrastructure.
Winter Park area is really nice. Grew up there (17 years worth), so saw the "boom" of new constructions, etc. Lived a little bit away from downtown Winter Park (in Seminole County), but the houses there are situated on larger than 1/2-acre lots, and there seems to be a lot more room. I wouldn't want to move back there (I like the small-town atmosphere of Gainesville), but I like living within 2 hours of Orlando (as well as Jacksonville and Tampa).

[tategter]

Pensacola in NW Florida is a nice coastal touristy town. About 6-7 hours from Orlando so probably not what you are looking for.

[Arles]

Crime rate in Florida cities with more than 50,000 people (US average is 330.6). Not all cities report crime numbers:

Orlando 948.3, population 185,951

Man, I had noi idea crime was that high in Orlando. Is that the case? I had always heard the Orlando area was a nice place to live.

[Buzzbee]

Man, I had noi idea crime was that high in Orlando. Is that the case? I had always heard the Orlando area was a nice place to live.
This is artificially inflated. It includes the concession prices at Disney.

[JeffR]

Man, I had noi idea crime was that high in Orlando. Is that the case? I had always heard the Orlando area was a nice place to live.

The crime tends to be pretty localized. Even side-by-side neighborhoods can be wildly different.